December 9, 2024
Family engagement and school attendance are deeply connected, and efforts to improve both are an important part of an educator’s job. This Spotlight shares resources that help schools go the extra mile in welcoming families, guide educators through more effectively addressing chronic absenteeism at their schools, and provide evidence-based advice on engaging families with culturally competent strategies that strengthen community bonds.
How to Make Extra Efforts to Welcome Parents and Families
It’s no secret that positive and supportive relationships between schools and student families can improve a myriad of outcomes for students, from attendance to grades to behavior. But schools that rely on the old standbys of parent–teacher conferences and back-to-school nights may be missing their chance to extend their outreach in ways that make families feel warmly welcomed.
A welcoming school starts with the basics of a family’s first experience. Parking should be convenient and clearly indicated, and signs should indicate where and how parents can enter. Once families make their way inside, they should find a comfortable waiting area with flyers in all student home languages advertising school activities and local enrichment opportunities. Whether families are visiting in person or contacting the school by phone, staff should be knowledgeable and helpful and should work quickly to resolve any issues.
Schools can go further still to welcome families. Principals can offer office hours for visits from parents and students; teachers and administrators can connect with families during student pickup and drop-off times; and administrators can build time into teachers’ schedules to allow them to contact families directly to express a concern, offer praise, or update parents on student progress. Any time schools and families connect can be enhanced with fresh ideas and energy to revitalize community engagement.
Learn More About Supportive Family Partnerships
Six Steps to Improving School Attendance
Chronic school absence can cause a cascading series of issues for students as they fall behind their classmates, and the problem is widespread: The U.S. Department of Education classified 10.1 million students as chronically absent in the 2020/21 academic year, which means a solid fifth of U.S. students missed at least 10 percent of school days that year. This easy-to-follow infographic offers educators six actionable, quick-to-read steps on how districts can improve student attendance.
The advice starts with a careful examination of data; separating absences into several categories, from at risk to extreme chronic absence, can yield insights into what support families need and extends to details on recruiting community partners to help with attendance efforts.
Read More About Improving School Attendance
Creating Culturally Competent Intentional Partnerships With Families
“Engaging in school transformation today requires solutions that address the whole child, the whole family, and the whole community to repair past failings and reimagine a future in which all students can thrive,” writes the California Center for School Climate in Family Engagement: Authentically Integrating Essential Competencies, a brief that offers educators a roadmap for culturally responsive practices that create equitable family engagement.
The brief separates the family engagement process into four domains: Reflect, Connect, Collaborate for Learning, and Lead Alongside Families, with guiding advice on each step that highlights issues educators may not have considered. For instance, when seeking to collaborate with families on school activities and learning, educators can offer families a variety of methods to connect, from focus groups to Zoom meetings to home visits.
Once connected, the brief advises, educators could consider collaborating on the design of home-based activities, such as cooking a favorite family dish: “Young children can assist with simple measuring and counting activities or can tell another family member about how the dish was made, step-by-step.”
Get More Tips for Developing Intentional Partnerships With Families
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